Bucks pub manager says end of tax freeze is "another hit in the pocket"

Drinkers face significant increases to alcohol prices as duty on a bottle of wine could rise by as much as 20%.

The price increase is part of a new system set out by Rishi Sunak in 2021 which aims at taxing alcohol by strength rather than the previous categories of spirits, wine, beer and ciders, to encourage customers to cut back.

This is another blow for pubs and customers alike, who will be directly affected by the change.

Mark Maylin, who runs the Golden Cross in Saunderton, Buckinghamshire, said: "It will inevitably mean a price increase of some kind and it will hit the customers who are already pushed with higher fuel and energy bills along with the cost of living crisis."

"There are people who rely on the pub for the community, and this will be another hit in the pocket for those people", he added.

Mr Sunak described the move as "the most radical simplification of alcohol duties for over 140 years", enabled by Brexit.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced at the March Budget an end to the alcohol tax freeze on August 1 and an increase set by inflation, currently at 10.1%.

"The pub's always been considered the goose that lays the golden egg..."

According to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA), duty for a bottle of wine will rise by 44p, which, combined with VAT, will cost an extra 53p to the customers.

Between inflation and VAT, the price of other imported alcohols such as port could go up by more than £1.50., and the total tax for a bottle of spirit could go up by around 90p.

Mr Maylin believes pubs have been targeted for years and continue to suffer.

He said: "Unfortunately the pub's always been considered the goose that lays the golden egg by the government and by the pub companies. That stopped a long time ago but they still seem to feel like they can squeeze us that little bit more for extra income."

However distillers worry they will face the heaviest sanctions, as pubs will enjoy a tax break from draught products.

Director of strategy for Scotch Whisky Association, Graeme Littlejohn, said: "At a time when inflation has only just started to creep downwards, this tax increase will continue to fuel inflation and make it more difficult for the Scotch Whisky industry to invest in growth and job creation in Scotland and across the UK supply chain."

"In a further blow, distillers will now face a further competitive disadvantage in pubs, restaurants and bars by being unfairly excluded from tax breaks available to beer and cider."

The government say they're doing all they can to lower prices for businesses and consumers.